List of youngest state leaders since 1900

This is a list of state leaders aged 30 or younger when they assumed office (since 1900). It does not include leaders who did not assume power in their own right, or leaders who served under colonial rule.

Monarchs[edit]

Name	State	Position	Born	Assumed office	At age	Notes
Fuad II	Egypt	King	1952	1952	6 months
Puyi	China	Emperor	1906	1908	2
Gyanendra of Nepal	Nepal	King	1947	1950	3
Mwambutsa IV	Burundi	King	1912	1915	3
Tenzin Gyatso	Tibet	Dalai Lama	1935	1940	4
Michael I	Romania	King	1921	1927	5
Simeon II	Bulgaria	Tsar	1937	1943	6
Duy Tân	Vietnam	Emperor	1900	1907	7
Ananda Mahidol	Thailand	King	1925	1935	9	Assumed power following a 10-year regency.
Ahmad Shah Qajar	Sublime State of Persia	Shah	1898	1909	11	Assumed power following a 5-year regency.
Hussein	Jordan	King	1935	1952	16
Jigme Singye Wangchuck	Bhutan	King	1955	1972	16
Alfonso XIII	Spain	King	1886	1902	16	Assumed power following a 16-year regency.
Tribhuvan	Nepal	King	1906	1923	17	Assumed power following a regency since 1911.
Farouk I	Egypt	King	1920	1937	17	Assumed power following a 1-year regency.
Marie-Adélaïde	Luxembourg	Grand Duchess	1894	1912	17
Peter II	Yugoslavia	King	1923	1941	17	Assumed power following a 6-year regency.
Iyasu V	Ethiopia	Emperor	1895	1913	18
Faisal II	Iraq	King	1935	1953	18	Assumed power following a 14-year regency.
Mswati III	Eswatini	King	1968	1986	18	Assumed power following a 3-year regency.
Manuel II	Portugal	King	1889	1908	18
Mihai I	Romania	King	1921	1940	18	Was previously King from 1927 to 1930 under a regency.
Bhumibol Adulyadej	Thailand	King	1927	1946	18
Ntare V	Burundi	King	1947	1966	18
Mohammad Zahir Shah	Afghanistan	King	1914	1933	19
Norodom Sihanouk	Cambodia	King	1922	1941	19
Baudouin	Belgium	King	1930	1951	20	Acted as regent for his father since 1950.
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi	Iran	Shah	1919	1941	21
Hassanal Bolkiah	Brunei	Sultan	1946	1967	21	Reigning as Sultan since 1967.
Charlotte	Luxemburg	Grand Duchess	1896	1919	22
Alexander	Greece	King	1893	1917	23
Constantine II	Greece	King	1940	1964	23
Boris III	Bulgaria	Tsar	1894	1918	24
Jigme Dorji Wangchuck	Bhutan	King	1928	1952	24
Hirohito	Japan	Emperor	1901	1926	25	Acted as regent for his father since 1921.
Rainier III	Monaco	Prince	1923	1949	25
Elizabeth II	United Kingdom	Queen	1926	1952	25
Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck	Bhutan	King	1980	2006	26
Amānullāh Khān	Afghanistan	Emir	1892	1919	26
Moshoeshoe II	Lesotho	King	1938	1965	26	Ruled as Paramount Chief under colonial rule since 1960.
Birendra	Nepal	King	1945	1972	26
Carl XVI Gustaf	Sweden	King	1946	1973	27
Letsie III	Lesotho	King	1963	1990	27
Vajiravudh	Siam	King	1881	1910	29
Karl I	Austria-Hungary	Emperor	1887	1916	29
Qaboos bin Said al Said	Oman	Sultan	1940	1970	29
Dipendra	Nepal	King	1971	2001	29
Vittorio Emanuele III	Italy	King	1869	1900	30

Non-royal leaders[edit]

Name	State	Position	Born	Assumed office	At age	Notes
Jean-Claude Duvalier	Haiti	President	1951	1971	19	Became president after his father's death.^[1]
Navaandorjiin Jadambaa	Mongolia	Chairman of the Presidium	1900	1924	24
Valentine Strasser	Sierra Leone	President	1967	1992	25	^[2]^[3]
Michel Micombero	Burundi	Prime Minister	1940	1966	25	Later became President in 1966 at 26.^[4]
Puyi	Manchukuo	Chief Executive	1906	1932	26	^[5]
Maria Lea Pedini-Angelini	San Marino	Captain Regent	1954	1981	26	^[6]
Enzo Colombini	San Marino	Captain Regent	1958	1985	26	^[7]
Giacomo Simoncini	San Marino	Captain Regent	1994	2021	26
Ahmet Zogu	Albania	Prime Minister	1895	1922	27	Prime minister and President at 29. Became King of Albania in 1928 at 32.
Muammar Gaddafi	Libya	Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution	1942	1969	27
Gloriana Ranocchini	San Marino	Captain Regent	1957	1984	27
Giovanni Lonfernini	San Marino	Captain Regent	1976	2003	27
Abdessalam Jalloud	Libya	Prime Minister	1944	1972	27
Andrea Zafferani	San Marino	Captain Regent	1982	2010	27
Matteo Ciacci	San Marino	Captain Regent	1990	2018	27
Khertek Anchimaa-Toka	Tuva	Chair of the Presidium	1912	1940	28
Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum	United Arab Emirates	Prime Minister	1943	1971	28
Vanessa D'Ambrosio	San Marino	Captain Regent	1988	2017	28
Alexander Chervyakov	Belarusian SSR	Prime Minister	1892	1920	28
Mario Frick	Liechtenstein	Prime Minister	1965	1993	28
Kim Jong-un	North Korea	General Secretary Chairman Supreme Commander	1983	2011	28	Became Supreme leader of North Korea after his father's death.
Giuliano Gozi	San Marino	Captain Regent	1894	1923	28
Samuel Doe	Liberia	President	1951	1980	28
Ieremia Tabai	Kiribati	President	1949	1979	29	Served as colonial Chief Minister since 1978.
Jamtsangiin Damdinsüren	Mongolia	Chairman of the Presidium	1898	1927	29
Lhendup Dorji	Bhutan	Prime Minister	1935	1964	29
Muhammad Ali Haitham	South Yemen	Prime Minister	1940	1969	29
Milo Đukanović	Montenegro	Prime Minister	1962	1991	29
Yahya Jammeh	Gambia	President	1965	1994	29
Souley Abdoulaye	Niger	Prime Minister	1965	1994	29
Roque González Garza	Mexico	President	1885	1915	29
Gnassingbé Eyadéma	Togo	President	1937	1967	29
Branko Crvenkovski	Macedonia	Prime Minister	1962	1992	29
Joseph Kabila	Democratic Republic of the Congo	President	1971	2001	29
Alessandro Cardelli	San Marino	Captain Regent	1991	2020	29
Muhammad Ahmad al-Mangoush	Libya	Prime Minister	1967	1997	30
David Dacko	Central African Republic	President	1930	1960	30	Served as colonial Prime Minister since 1959.
Jean-Baptiste Bagaza	Burundi	President	1946	1976	30
Bernard Dowiyogo	Nauru	President	1946	1976	30
Ilir Meta	Albania	Prime Minister	1969	1999	30
Sadiq al-Mahdi	Sudan	Prime Minister	1935	1966	30
Marien Ngouabi	Republic of the Congo	President	1938	1969	30
Pandeli Majko	Albania	Prime Minister	1967	1998	30

References[edit]

^ Shaw, Karl (2005) [2004]. Power Mad! [Šílenství mocných] (in Czech). Praha: Metafora. p. 52. ISBN 80-7359-002-6.
^ Akam, Simon (13 February 2012). "Akam '09 profiles former African dictator Valentine Strasser". Columbia Journalism School. Archived from the original on 10 December 2013.
^ Marke, Roland (4 August 2008). "Harvest of Shame: Former Sierra Leonean Ruler Valentine Strasser". World Press Review.
^ Chrétien, Jean-Pierre (2008). "Micombero, Michel". In Gates, Louis Jr.; Akyeampong, Emmanuel K. (eds.). Dictionary of African Biography. Vol. 4. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
^ Wen Yuan-ning, "Emperor Malgré Lui", in Wen Yuan-ning and others, Imperfect Understanding: Intimate Portraits of Modern Chinese Celebrities, edited by Christopher Rea. Amherst, NY: Cambria Press, 2018, p. 117.
^ Guide to Women Leaders. "San Marino". Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
^ WorldStatesmen.org

[1] Shaw, Karl (2005) [2004]. Power Mad! [Šílenství mocných] (in Czech). Praha: Metafora. p. 52. ISBN 80-7359-002-6.

[2] Akam, Simon (13 February 2012). "Akam '09 profiles former African dictator Valentine Strasser". Columbia Journalism School. Archived from the original on 10 December 2013.

[3] Marke, Roland (4 August 2008). "Harvest of Shame: Former Sierra Leonean Ruler Valentine Strasser". World Press Review.

[4] Chrétien, Jean-Pierre (2008). "Micombero, Michel". In Gates, Louis Jr.; Akyeampong, Emmanuel K. (eds.). Dictionary of African Biography. Vol. 4. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[5] Wen Yuan-ning, "Emperor Malgré Lui", in Wen Yuan-ning and others, Imperfect Understanding: Intimate Portraits of Modern Chinese Celebrities, edited by Christopher Rea. Amherst, NY: Cambria Press, 2018, p. 117.

[6] Guide to Women Leaders. "San Marino". Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2011.

[7] WorldStatesmen.org

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Monarchs[edit]

Non-royal leaders[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]